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Milwaukee: Officers reportedly won't face charges in man's death

Associated Press

Posted:
03/28/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated:
03/28/2013 07:39:13 PM CDT

A special prosecutor handling the case of a robbery suspect who died in custody of Milwaukee police is expected to release his final report Friday, and the victim's girlfriend says the prosecutor told her none of the officers would face state charges.

Derek Williams, 22, died after gasping for air in the back of a squad car in July 2011. An inquest jury last month recommended a misdemeanor charge against the officers of failure to render aid.

Special prosecutor John Franke initially planned to release his report on the case Thursday. His office said late in the afternoon the release would be postponed until Friday but offered no explanation for the delay.

Williams's girlfriend, Sharday Rose, said Franke told family members Wednesday night he couldn't prove a case against three officers, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

A message left for Rose by The Associated Press on Thursday was not immediately returned. Her attorney, Jonathan Safran, declined immediate comment until he could read Franke's report.

"He and I have somewhat of a difference of interpretation about the statute, about what needs to be proven for a charge and conviction," Safran said. "But until I get a chance to see the decision and his analysis I have no other comment to make."

The three police officers in the case -- Richard Ticcioni, Jeffrey Cline and Jason Bleichwehl -- declined to testify during the inquest, citing their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

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Other officers testified that they thought Williams was faking.

In his closing statement to the inquest jury, Franke presented arguments both in favor of charges and against charges. On one hand, he said, half a dozen neighbors testified that they heard Williams repeatedly saying he couldn't breathe as he was arrested and taken to the squad car. On the other hand, the officers eventually performed CPR and called paramedics, Franke said.

Franke, a private attorney, was named the special prosecutor by Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm,

Franke earlier decided against asking the inquest jury to consider felony charges against the officers because of the complexity of the medical evidence and lingering uncertainty about why Williams died.

The inquest jury found probable cause that Williams -- who had a genetic marker for sickle cell but not the disease itself -- died of sickle-cell crisis.

Williams was arrested after running about a block and a half. He had been released from jail earlier in the day, where he had been held for unpaid tickets. He had no criminal record. A video obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel showed that for nearly eight minutes, Williams struggled to breathe and begged for help while officers ignored his pleas.

Bridget Boyle, the attorney representing Cline, said her client was upset about Williams's death but not criminally liable.

"Milwaukee police officers are not taught how to identify who has sickle-cell trait or how to assess people for sickle-cell trait," she said. "This is an unfortunate, unfortunate circumstance but I think the right decision was made by Franke."

Messages left with attorneys for Ticcioni and Bleichwehl on Thursday were not immediately returned.

The officers could still face federal criminal charges. The U.S. Attorney's office in Milwaukee has not ruled out charges, and the U.S. Department of Justice is considering whether to sue the Milwaukee Police Department over a possible pattern of civil rights abuses